Harry Potter and the Mother of Illusion
by I Hate Snatch Steal
Summary: Lilly Potter's final wish sends Zoroark to the potter verse to be Harry's adoptive mother much to the dismay of a certain headmaster and his plans. This story is inspired by "From the Ashes" by EverD. Special thanks to Ogamaga for creative assistance.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1:

Lilly Potter could only watch helplessly as her husband was murdered in front of her. She knew there was nowhere to run but was determined to keep her son Harry safe until the end. Voldemort fired a killing curse at Harry and she dove in front of him. In her final moments, Lilly Potter wished with all of her will and magic for her son to by safe and cared for.

Meanwhile, thousands of realities away:

Life had been peaceful for Zoroark ever since the incident with Kodai many years ago. She'd watched fondly and proudly as her little Zorua had grown and finally evolved. Sometime later he'd gven her a warm goodbye and left to travel the world in search of adventure. A few months later, Zoroark was walking by some ancient structures that humans called "The ruins of Alph" when she felt something powerful but was unsure of what it was. Images flew through her head of a red headed woman with an imploring look, a human baby with a scar on his forehead, and finally a cold cruel laugh before suddenly everything stopped. Zoroark found herself in an unfamiliar looking human village next to a nearly destroyed house. The area didn't smell familiar and that alarmed her, so she took the form of a Ratatta and hid. From her hiding spot she saw an unnaturally large human go into the house and retrieve something hidden in a blanket, before having a talk with another human and finally leaving with the bundle via a flying motorcycle.

Over the next few years, Zoroark adjusted to this strange new world she found herself in. It seemed to be devoid of other pokemon and that made her sad. There were plenty of humans but some groups of them seemed different. She could sense an unknown energy from them. It seemed that the ones with the energy only associated with others who also had that energy, and preferred settings and styles of clothing that seemed dated compared to the other group. Occasionally she would have dreams about the human baby from her vision. In each dream she'd feel his fear but also deep down his desire to be loved. Zoroark stealthily explored this new word and after exploring many countries and not finding a single pokemon she started to worry. Eventually she steeled herself to sneak aboard a ferry bound for somewhere called "Japan".

Later, Zoroark was wandering by a deserted shrine in the guise of a male human when she heard an old but wise voice say, "I've been expecting you". Zoroark jumped, then she turned and saw an old woman who gave off the same unknown energy she'd noticed in others before. Strangely, the woman had addressed her in English. "Don't be afraid," The woman said, "I foresaw your arrival in my gazing water." Zoroark went inside the shrine and the woman sat down at a table and beckoned her to do the same. The woman began to explain: "I saw a vision of a mother protecting her child and of a creature I'd never seen being pulled from its world. Then I learned that someday you'd come here." Zoroark replied, "Did this child have any distinguishing features?" The woman replied, "He had a scar on his forehead shaped like a lightning bolt".

Zoroark was surprised, she thought that maybe someone could explain why she was in this strange world but before she could reply the woman continued, "You don't need to hide your true form from me, though I have to say that illusion is very impressive." Zoroark dropped the illusion and asked via telepathy rather than an illusion of a voice, "Since you foresaw my coming here, do you know the meaning behind it?" The woman replied, "My vision told me that you were summoned by a mother's final wish." Zoroark contemplated, then replied, "That explains the vision I had when I arrived." She continued, "This world's humans seem split into factions of those who have strange energy as you do and those who don't. I don't understand how that works". Zoroark stayed with the women who introduced herself as "Claire" for the next few years. Claire gave Zoroark an explanation of the wizarding and muggle worlds and since she'd lived abroad for a lot of her life she knew a lot about magical Britain. One day suddenly Claire became very ill. "I foresaw this day," she rasped, "I'm glad I got to meet you before I pass on. In the chest in my room you will find my will. Never forget that the future is yours to create."

Zoroark cried for her first companion in this strange new world before eventually opening the chest. It seemed to have the weird energy she'd sensed. "It's called 'magic'" she corrected herself. She felt as if the magic had tested her before letting her open the chest. Claire's will proclaimed Zoroark heir to her savings as well as the rightful owner of the contents of the chest. Inside were a few useful artifacts including a pouch with a powerful expansion charm and a necklace made by kitsune that would foil any tracking spell that was cast by someone younger then the maker of the necklace was. When Zoroark finally fell asleep that night, she had another dream. She saw the boy from her vision and previous dreams. After waking up with a start she knew he needed her. Zoroark also noticed that she could track the boy, though she wasn't sure how she could. Zoroark set off to find the boy, whom she already thought of as her son, without even thinking about getting more sleep. She'd once questioned why she felt the way she did about this boy, but she had a feeling that this was what his biological mother wanted for him.

Harry Potter woke from a strange dream. It showed a black bipedal fox traveling the word as if searching for something. He was sure that he'd had the same dream more than once before. Some would describe the creature as fierce looking, but Harry's dreams always portrayed it as kind and caring. Harry liked these dreams even if he couldn't share them with anyone. He didn't have any friends and the Dursleys seemed to act even worse to him if he mentioned anything even close to supernatural. Sighing to himself, Harry got out of bed and started cooking his family's breakfast. It was almost school vacation week though that didn't matter much to Harry.

Zoroark had just arrived back in Britain while tracking her son's "magical beacon", for lack of a better word, when the "signal" vanished. This didn't worry her since it happened sometimes. However, when it didn't re-appear after a few days she became worried. Suddenly the signal came back for a few hours, during which Zoroark tracked it to a county known as Surrey, before vanishing again. Zoroark would be lying to herself if she said she wasn't worried.

Harry resumed school after a week of spring break. He'd had the dream about the fox creature again last night though it seemed more desperate then in his other dreams, though he wasn't sure what it was desperate about. Spring break hadn't been enjoyable for Harry since it never was, though getting to go to an arcade with Dudley was an improvement even if he wasn't allowed to play any of the games there. The teacher handed back their most recent tests and Harry noticed that he'd scored a decent grade. He also noticed that Dudley was being held back after class. Harry momentarily thought that his obese cousin was going to be punished for bullying him last school week. However, he dismissed that idea. Dudley never got in trouble for some reason. Whatever had happened caused Dudley to be in a very bad mood for the rest of the day though.

Classes had just let out for the day when Harry sensed danger. He saw Dudley rounding up his gang and quickened his pace on the off chance that he could get home and hide in his cupboard or something. Harry broke into a full run trying to escape Dudley's gang. Unfortunately for Harry they managed to corner him against the wall of a building. Pierce held Harry's arms behind his back and Dudley started punching him. "Your ruining my schooling freak!" he screamed, "I got held back after class because of you!" Harry knew that wasn't true but decided it wasn't worth mentioning. Dudley continued to rant and hit Harry who was having trouble staying conscious because the beating was going on for longer than usual. However suddenly Harry felt Pierce's arms being ripped away from him, then he heard a loud thud. Harry opened his eyes to see the back of some sort of black and red bipedal animal standing between him and Dudley's gang. Pierce was on the ground as if he'd been knocked over. The animal let out a menacing roar and Dudley ran away with his gang quickly following suit. The animal turned around and looked at Harry. Harry started to sway on his feet and then he fell. The last thing he noticed was his fall being broken by something as he passed out.

A few minutes earlier, Zoroark had sensed a feeling of intense fear from her son's magical signal. Realizing that the boy was most likely in danger, she dropped her transformation of a nondescript human female and ran toward the signal's source. She bounded over cars, fences, and anything else in her way and eventually came upon her son and a gang of delinquents attacking him. Zoroark freed her son from the delinquent holding him before throwing the delinquent onto the ground. Then she quickly positioned herself between her son and the gang and let out a menacing roar. The gang ran away, and she considered giving chase to ensure that they were scared off but dismissed the idea since she knew her son was injured. Zoroark turned and saw her son swaying on his feet. She quickly moved closer and caught him as he passed out. Zoroark picked up her son and ran for a nearby forest where they would be safe from others.

By the time Zoroark reached the forest, night was falling. She set her charge down on the grass in a clearing and examined him. In addition to the injuries, the boy wore clothes that clearly the wrong size and he looked malnourished. Once the moon rose she could see the lightning bolt scar that she'd seen in her dreams of him. Zoroark concentrated on the moonlight, willing it to heal her son. His injuries began to fade, and his breathing became more even. Zoroark lay down, pulled her son into her fur to keep him warm, and rested, though she kept her ears alert for any intruders.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2:

Harry woke slowly. He felt like he was lying in the most wonderful fur blanket. His sleepy awareness wasn't sure what to make of this, since the cupboard under the stairs didn't have a fur blanket. He concluded that waking slowly must mean that he was still dreaming since Aunt Petunia always woke him up to make him do chores. He turned to go back to sleep but before he could the fur blanket under him shifted. Harry opened his eyes and stared at a clearing in the middle of a forest. He gently picked himself up and noticed that he wasn't lying in a fur blanket, he was lying on a large black fox creature, which was starting to stir. Harry jumped up and backed away hurriedly blurting out "I'm sorry I'm sorry, I didn't mean to wake you please don't eat me". The creature got up, stretched and looked at him with what harry swore looked like concern, but he didn't think it was since no one would be concerned about a freak like him. He heard a voice in his mind, "Are you alright? I didn't mean to wake you." Harry stopped stammering and said curiously, "Are you talking to me?" The voice replied, "Yes I am talking to you via telepathy".

Zoroark couldn't seem to figure out why her son, though he didn't know he was that yet, looked so terrified. Even seeing her form shouldn't make him this nervous. "Are you hurt?" She asked, and he shook his head. "Why are you so nervous?" she couldn't help but ask. Her son looked at her more thoroughly and said: "You're the black fox from my dream" and with that he visibly calmed down. Zoroark thought to herself, "so we both had dreams about each other" and said, "Yes. Your mother's final wish was that I adopt and care for you. Do you have a name?" The boy replied, "Harry Potter, but my Aunt and Uncle call me 'boy' or 'freak'" Zoroark replied, "My name is Zoroark" and then she noticed that harry looked sad. "Is something wrong?" she asked. He replied, "Nothing's wrong, it's just that my aunt is going to come and wake me up soon. This is such a nice dream and it feels so real. I wish it would just go on forever." Zoroark replied, "I don't expect you to take my word for this, but this isn't a dream. Don't you humans have some way of telling when you're not dreaming?" Harry replied, "The kids at school say that you pinch yourself and if you feel the pain, you're awake." She gave him an expectant look in response. Harry pinched the skin on his arm and winced slightly. Then his expression changed back to being horrified. "Harry what's wrong?" she asked. Harry replied, "Please you have to go." Zoroark said, "Why would I abandon you?" Harry nervously replied, "I've done something freakish again, my Uncle is going to kill me!" Zoroark had suspected throughout the whole conversation that Harry hadn't been treated well but this was far worse then she'd expected. "Reflexively she got in front of him and said, "He'll have to go through me first! No one harms my kit" and showed her canine teeth as she said the last part.

For the first time he could remember, Harry felt a spark of hope. This giant fox creature, "Zoroark", he mentally corrected himself, offered to protect him from his Uncle. Harry started to smile as Zoroark said, "I want to you to live with me out here instead of going back to those horrible relatives of yours". Harry replied, "Really?" Zoroark nodded so Harry ran up and gave her a big hug.

Over the next week Harry and Zoroark got to know each other more. Harry felt like a huge burden had been lifted not only because he'd escaped his situation at the Dursleys but also from being able to confess his troubles to Zoroark and having her there to support him. Zoroark felt pleased about being a mother again and was happy to care for Harry. Harry talked about school and how he wished that he could get better grades then his cousin without being punished for it. Zoroark decided that she would be sure that Harry continued to learn and to encourage his learning. Despite the pleasant turn of events upon meeting Harry, one thing still bothered Zoroark. The more she heard about Harry's life at the Dursleys the more she wanted to make them pay. She's contemplated physical harm and decided that the result would be either insignificant or too severe for her to be satisfied with. After Harry mentioned his Uncle's job and lamented about one of Dudley's birthday parties, she had an idea.

Zoroark walked toward the front door of Grunnings disguised as Vernon Dursley. Her illusion of him was made to be unkempt and unprofessional looking. Once she arrived, she made her way to the senior manager's office and barged in through the door. The senior manager looked up from his paperwork and gave a confused stare. "I want a raise now!" She intoned with Vernon's voice. "What?" The manager replied incredulously. "You heard me, the only thing that keeps this company running is me so pay up!" The manager replied, "I know your work is important, but we can discuss this next month when performance reports are due." Zoroark decided to channel Dudley Dursley for the next part. She stomped her foot and said "I want a raise now you cheapskate!" in her best impression of a spoiled child but with Vernon's voice. The manager had had enough. He replied, "Get back to work now, or else." Zoroark replied, "Not until you give me the raise I deserve." The manger responded, "If you want more money so badly you can get it somewhere else because you're fired!" Zororak replied, "You'll be hearing from my lawyers about this!" and her illusion appearance stormed off, though inwardly she was satisfied.

Vernon Dursley had been having a bad morning. He'd gone to bed last night happy that the freak hadn't been seen in a week. The police had questioned him the day before, but he'd assured them that the boy had gone to school one day and never returned and that he'd had nothing to do with it. His good mood had vanished when he'd left the house for work only to find the tires on his car had been slashed to pieces. He told Petunia to call the police as soon as he'd left and angrily called a cab. Little did he know that tire damage would be the least of his troubles that day.


	3. Chapter 3

Zoroark returned to the place in the forest where she'd left Harry. She'd warned him to stay out of sight of anyone else. In one hand she held a bag containing a cake she'd purchased from a bakery on her way back after impersonating Vernon Dursley. Harry came out from his hiding place and said, "Where'd you go?" She replied, "I gave your Uncle some payback for how he'd treated you all these years." Harry replied, "You didn't hurt him, did you?" Zoroark laughed and said, "Only his reputation". After giving a satisfied look Harry asked, "What's in the bag?" Zoroark set the bag on the ground, lifted out the cake, and said "Surprise! You said you never had a birthday cake before, so I picked one up on my way back". Harry gave a big smile but then said, "The bakery didn't call animal control?" and after realizing what he'd said added, "No offense". Zoroark replied, "None taken, back on my world the humans didn't call me "Master of Illusion" for nothing. Then she shape shifted into a human female with long blonde hair and blue eyes and back again.

Harry was impressed, his mother was apparently full of surprises. Then the first part of the statement registered. "Your world?" he asked. Zoroark replied, "That's a story for another time" and Harry was sure he heard sadness in her voice.

Zoroark did her best to keep her voice even, though being reminded of the pokemon world again made her very sad. "Let's eat" she said, the earlier note of sadness gone from her voice for the moment and the two enjoyed their meal.

The cake piqued Harry's curiosity about the world outside his life at the Dursleys so later he asked Zoroark, "Can you bring me more things like this please? I never got to experience much outside of my cupboard and school." Zoroark replied, "I can do more than that, how would you like to see a movie together?" Harry replied, "I'd love to, but won't people recognize me and try to take me back to the Dursleys?" Zoroark said, "I can do more than just shapeshift, I can also create an illusion that makes other people perceive you as having a different appearance and voice." Harry took all this in with a smile, then added "While we're out, we should probably call each other by nicknames or something." Zorark replied, "How about you call me Zoe, what would you like to be called?" Harry thought about names starting with Z and recalled an anime that Dudley watched during his brief interest in a card game with an unusual sounding name. "How about 'Zane'". Harry replied. Over the next few days "Zoe" and "Zane" went to the movies, a few restaurants, and even an amusement park. Harry was fascinated by all the things he'd missed out on growing up under the heel of the Dursleys. The fascination quickly turned into a passion for learning and as result many of "Zoe" and "Zane's" outings were spent in the library.

During a trip to the Zoo Zoroark had left to get some more water for them to drink and thus Harry wandered the reptile house alone. He came upon a glass cage holding a large boa constrictor and saw a couple with two girls, one a toddler in a stroller and the other a teenager knocking on the cage trying to get the Snake's attention. After they'd left with the teenage girl in a huff Harry walked over. "It must be annoying having people banging on your cage like that all day." The snake turned and looked at him. Harry thought he saw a look of understanding in its eyes. "Hopefully the food is good though" he added. Harry was surprised to hear a low hissing voice reply, "The food is most pleasant, though I don't need to eat very often. I just wish the humans knew not to bang on the glass." Harry was taken back, "Wait, you can understand me?" he said. "Yes, though you are the first human I've seen who speaks the language of snakes". Harry noticed Zoroark walking over with drinks and said, "I'll tell the zookeeper to put up a sign for you" before walking over to meet her.

Harry after talking to the snake handler about putting up a sign shared his experience with Zoroark. Zoroark replied, "It must be due to you having magical parents" Harry asked, "My parents were magical?" Zoroark replied, "Yes, they were part of a larger society of witches and wizards that remains hidden from the world you know." For the next few hours Harry asked questions about magic and his heritage and Zoroark answered them to the best of her ability based on what Clair had told her.

It was almost dusk by the time the two of them had returned from the Zoo. Harry had questions and Zoroark sadly didn't have all the answers. The two had almost reached the forest when Zoroark sensed a faint hint of magic and heard a small pop. She turned and saw a red-haired man who clearly had no fashion sense based on his choice of clothing. He also seemed to have appeared out of nowhere. He said, "Come out Harry, I'm sure your Aunt and Uncle are very worried about you." Zoroark created an illusion of an out of control car to distract the man and telepathically said to Harry, "Hold on tight" before shapeshifting back into her true form, grabbing Harry, and bounding away.


End file.
